Winter Jam #4 of All World Tours

Once again ranking among the biggest first quarter tours in the world, the Winter Jam Tour Spectacular brought its 2017 Eastern U.S. run to a close earlier this month. Christian music's largest annual tour landed at #4 on Pollstar’s “1Q YTD Worldwide 2017 Ticket Sales Top 100 Tours” chart, it was recently announced, ahead of tours by such artists as Twenty One Pilots, Drake and Guns N' Roses.

Hitting a total of 46 cities from January through April, Winter Jam played to more than 27,000 people at Atlanta’s Georgia Dome, marking not only one of the tour’s largest crowds to date, but the last concert ever at the historic venue. In addition, sellouts continued at St. Louis' Scottrade Center; Bankers Life Fieldhouse in Indianapolis; Verizon Arena in Little Rock, Arkansas; and the Greensboro Coliseum in Greensboro, North Carolina, among numerous leading arenas. 

Showcasing 10 Christian music artists, Winter Jam featured Crowder, Britt Nicole, Tenth Avenue North, Andy Mineo, Colton Dixon, Thousand Foot Krutch and NewSong.  The tour was also highlighted by a special appearance from “Duck Dynasty” television star Sadie Robertson, as well as a message from acclaimed author, speaker Tony Nolan.

An array of special guest artists and athletes appeared in various cities during Winter Jam’s first quarter outing, including Matthew West, Lauren Daigle; “Duck Dynasty’s” Willie & Korie Robertson; “American Idol” alum Danny Gokey, Francesca Battistelli, Jordan Feliz, Zach Williams, Atlanta Braves great Otis Nixon; Kansas City Chiefs wide receiver Chris Conley; and Nashville Predators captain Mike Fisher.

“This has been such a special year for Winter Jam,” said Eddie Carswell, tour creator and NewSong founding member. “The fantastic lineup, the packed arenas and the special guests who joined us made it an incredible tour, but the best part—as always—is seeing so many people come to Christ through this ministry each year.”

Owl City to Collaborate with Britt Nicole

Adam Young (Owl City) has announced via his YouTube channel that he will be releasing two brand new songs from his upcoming full-length album on October 7th. These songs are "Tokyo" featuring the Tokyo-based group SEKAI NO OWARI, and "You're Not Alone" featuring the Christian pop artist (and one of Young's favorite artists) Britt Nicole.

Young shared that "You're Not Alone" is "a bit more weighty" than his traditionally light-hearted and sometimes goofy synth pop.

"It's very much based on my own personal faith and my own personal relationship with God", says Young. His faith is something listeners have gotten glimpses of in the past ("Meteor Shower" and "Galaxies").

Young also hinted that "Tokyo" was written as a result of spending late, jet-lagged nights in the busy city. He is thrilled to share the track with his "new, but very good friends from Japan". Owl City's synth-y tracks mixed with the energy from SEKAI NO OWARI is definitely something to look forward to.

This will be the second release of new music this year from Owl City. His EP Ultraviolet released this summer and featured dance hits like "Beautiful Times" featuring pop/dubstep violinist Lindsey Stirling. Fans will have to wait for more details on the exciting upcoming release of Owl City's fifth full-length album.

Tedashii Debuts in Top 20 on Billboard 200

Below Paradise, the latest project from hip-hop artist Tedashii, has debuted at No. 17 on the Top 200 Billboard Album chart while also grabbing the No. 2 positions on the Rap, Independent and Christian charts. This is the highest debut for Tedashii since his first album dropped in 2006.

Below Paradise, Tedashii's fourth career studio release, features such artists as Lecrae, Trip Lee, Crowder, Andy Mineo, Kam Parker, Christon Gray and Britt Nicole.  The deluxe version is available exclusively through iTunes, which includes three bonus tracks that features KB, Dimitri McDowell, and Derek Minor.

Tobymac Featured in Space Warriors

Tobymac's "Unstoppable" is the featured closing song in the new movie "Space Warriors" starring Dermot Mulroney, Academy Award winner Mira Sorvino, Josh Lucas, Thomas Horn ("Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close") and Danny Glover. The film is directed by Sean McNamara ("Soul Surfer"). In addition to its theatrical release on April 26, "Space Warriors" will also make its World Television debut as part of the Walden Family Theater series on Hallmark Channel, May 31 at 8pm ET.

"Space Warriors" tells the story of a smart and mischievous teenage boy who dreams of attending Space Camp. He is among six highly skilled teenagers handpicked to be part of a summer space camp competition at the U.S. Space & Rocket Center in Huntsville, Ala. A motley crew with formidable competition, they band in friendship, humor and resourcefulness and ultimately become heroes when danger erupts on the International Space Station and they use their ingenuity to save the day.

 Tobymac joins Britt Nicole as well as some emerging artists in sonically decorating the film, set at the world-famous U.S. Space & Rocket Center in Huntsville, home of Space Camp and Aviation Challenge.


"This wonderful film should inspire and entertain kids all over the world in the space and science arena," says Tim Hall, USSRC's media strategist and communications director. "The music in this movie is amazing. It punctuates the film and will resonate with our audience to bring even more attention to it. We here at the Space Camp and the U.S. Space & Rocket Center could not be happier to be involved."

Britt Nicole Selected as Presenter at Grammy Awards

First-time nominee, Britt Nicole, was one of the presenters at the 55th Annual GRAMMY Awards Pre-Telecast Ceremony on Feb. 10 in Los Angeles.

Capital Records to Release Britt Nicole's Gold

Capitol Records is gearing up for the release of the new album from Britt Nicole. Due out February 26th, the newly repackaged Gold which was released on Sparrow Records in March 2012 and debuted at number 41 on the Top 100 Billboard Chart signals Britt's emergence as a pop phenom.

The follow-up to Britt's sophomore effort The Lost Get Found, Gold now features new mixes of its title track and "All This Time. "

Offering both tender ballads and beat-soaked dance-pop songs, Gold showcases the passionately thoughtful lyrics that attest Britt's strength as a songwriter. Its slick and shimmering title track and lead single, for instance, strives to help kids overcome feelings of lonely self-doubt and find their way to courage and confidence.

"The message of 'Gold' is to remind those kids that are struggling that no matter what they have been told they are worth so much more than the words of another," explains Britt. "Once you know that, no one can ever steal your shine."

Best Female Christian Vocalist of All Time

Half a decade ago, I shared my thoughts on who I thought were the best female Christian vocalists of all time.

Criteria include song quality, vocal prowess, ability to play an instrument and/or craft a song, and of course my personal bias...

An updated list:

10. Nichole Nordeman

9. Crystal Lewis

8. Margaret Becker

7. Natalie Grant

6. Mandisa

5. Ginny Owens

4. Britt Nicole

3. Jaci Velasquez

2. Joy Williams

1. Amy Grant

Honorable Mentions:

Francesca Battistelli

Lisa Bevill

Christine Dente (Out of the Grey)

Brooke Fraser

Rachael Lampa

Leigh Nash (Sixpence None the Richer)

Rebecca St. James

Kathy Troccoli

Thoughts?

Looking forward to early 2012 Releases

January 10
David Crowder*Band Give Us Rest (A Requiem Mass in C [The Happiest of All Keys])

January 13
Anthem Lights The Acoustic Sessions EP

January 31
Starfield The Kingdom

February 7
Jaci Velasquez Diamond
Worth Dying For Live Riot

February 14
Eisley Deep Space EP

February 28
Kutless Believer

March ??
Thousand Foot Krutch The End Is Where We Begin

March 6
Todd Agnew How To Be Loved
Fireflight Now

March 13
Anberlin Anthology (Best Of)
Dave Barnes Stories To Tell

March 27
12 Stones Only Human
Jimmy Needham Clear The Stage
Britt Nicole untitled
Sidewalk Prophets untitled

April 10
Matthew West Into The Light

April 17
Big Daddy Weave Love Come To Life

May 22
Jon McLaughlin Promising Promises
MercyMe The Hurt and The Healer

Sometime 2012...
Sanctus Real untitled -- Fall 2012
Skillet untitled -- Late 2012
TobyMac untitled -- Late 2012
VOTA Sons & Daughters
The Waiting untitled new album